Pallets have, heretofore, been made out of wood and other materials such as plastic in order to serve as supports for moving items which are loaded thereon.
Pallets have also heretofore been made from paperboard products such as cardboard or the like in order to produce light weight and environmentally friendly pallets. Such pallets can include a bottom and top sheet or deck as well as runners interposed therebetween. Runners generally comprise of a folded sheet of paperboard. Such constructions of runners and paperboard pallets have, as one of the goals, to produce a rigid and strong device for supporting the load.
Examples of such prior art devices are illustrated in United States Patent Nos. U.S. Pat. No. 5,001,991 which relates to an improved pallet assembly which comprises a plurality of elongated stringer members, each being fabricated from multiple plies of web material, and a multiplicity of elongated decking members traversing the stringer members and assembled with them adjacent the top side of the pallet assembly. At least one of the stringer members has upwardly and transversely extending indentations, to define a neck portion at the bottom side thereof. A hollow, tubular reinforcing piece is inserted upwardly into the indentations of an associated stringer member, with the neck portion thereof extending downwardly thereinto, so that the components are securely and tightly inter-engaged with one another.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,230,291 which relates to a pallet as might be used to support cargo during that cargo's transportation or storage. The pallet is constructed of paper. The pallet design involves a central platform or deck constructed of a honeycomb filler bounded on the bottom surfaces by a corrugated sheet. The upper surface of the central platform may be covered with a corrugated sheet or heavy paper stock. Additionally, the upper and/or lower sheets may be folded over the edges of the honeycomb core and fastened to the other side. Runners or legs are included to support the central platform.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,176,090 which relates to a lightweight, completely recyclable paper pallet which is provided and which can be produced, shipped and stored as two die cut pieces, and which can be readily constructed without gluing to form a complete pallet. Preferably, the pallet includes a planar main panel having a pair of laterally spaced apart, side marginal, box-like underlying support sections; a box-like central support section coupled to the main panel completes the construction. Interconnection of the marginal support sections and central support section is accomplished by means of notched locking elements passing through strategically located slots in main panel and inter-fitting with upright notched reinforcing panels provided along the length of the supports.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,626,860 which relates to a foldable expendable four-way entry pallet. Log sleeves are formed in pairs at opposite ends of a piece of double-faced single-wall corrugated board and the entire intervening web is adhesively secured to the underside of the deck.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,986,418 which relates to a blank preform and tray pallet.
Finally U.S. Pat. No. 5,222,444 relates to paperboard runners and paperboard pallets constructed therewith.
It is an object of the present application to provide a runner having improved strength characteristics than constructed in the prior art.
It is also an object of this invention to provide an improved method of constructing runners and paperboard pallets. The broadest aspect of this invention relates to a runner for a pallet comprising a sheet of paperboard folded to present spaced top and bottom walls; a pair of side walls, a central web disposed between said side walls and depending from said top wall to said bottom wall; the top wall having top wall slots; the central web having central web slots aligned with said top wall slots; and at least one brace of paperboard having a plurality of folds to present a slotted block for engagement with one of said slots. A further aspect of this invention is related to a runner for a pallet comprising a folded sheet of paperboard and a brace: said sheet comprising: a first pair of spaced parallel fold lines for defining a bottom wall; a second pair of parallel fold lines spaced from and parallel to said first pair of parallel fold lines for defining a pair of side walls between said first fold lines and said second fold lines; a third pair of parallel fold lines parallel to, and bracketing said second pair of parallel fold lines for defining top wall portions between said second pair of fold lines and said third pair of fold lines; a pair of longitudinal edges parallel to and bracketing said third pair of fold lines to define central wall portions therebetween; at least one pair of longitudinally aligned cut-outs, each pair of longitudinally aligned cut-outs extending from one of said second fold lines across said top wall portion, across said third fold line and across a portion of said central wall portion to define a top wall slot portion in said top wall and a central wall rebate in said central web portion; said sheet foldable along said first, second and third fold lines to a folded position; said central wall portions depending from said top wall portions to said bottom wall in said folded portion; each pair of aligned top wall slot portions co-operating to define a top wall slot in said folded position; said brace comprised of paperboard having a plurality of folds to present a slotted block for insertion through said top wall slot to seat in said rebate.
Yet a further aspect of this invention is related to a paperboard pallet comprising: a bottom sheet having a pair of spaced fold lines for defining a pair of spaced upstanding bottom sheet sidewall portions; a runner comprising a sheet of paperboard having: a first pair of spaced parallel fold lines for defining a bottom wall; a second pair of parallel fold lines spaced from said first pair of parallel fold lines for defining a pair of side walls; a third pair of parallel fold lines spaced from said second pair of parallel fold lines for defining top wall portions, and central wall portions from said third pair of parallel fold lines and said outer periphery of said paperboard; said central wall portions depending from said top wall portions to said bottom wall; slots extending from said second fold lines across said top wall portions and a portion of said central wall portions; a top sheet for overlying said top wall of said runner; an adhesive for securing said bottom wall of said runner to said bottom sheet and said top portions of said runner to said top sheet; a brace of paperboard having a plurality of holes to present a slotted block for insertion into said slots of said runner.